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Know the Numbers

Credit Report

Typically, it costs under $50 to check your credit. With your permission the lender will order a review of your outstanding loans and your repayment history from a third party credit agency.

Application / Processing Fee

This cost, typically a few hundred dollars, is charged to cover the lender’s work to evaluate your ability to repay the loan. Some lenders will credit this back to you upon closing.

What is APR?

The APR, or annual percentage rate, is the sum total of all your borrowing costs expressed as a percentage interest rate charged on the loan balance.

For example: After fees, the original interest rate quote of 5.875% might work out to a 6% APR loan, where the interest costs about $6,000 per year for every $100,000 borrowed, and the principal payments are calculated based on the length of the loan term (for example 15, 20, or 30 years).

Indexes

The interest rates on variable loans readjust periodically based on changes in an index. Typical indexes include the Federal Funds Rate, Treasury Bill.

Points

When mortgage companies are competing by offering lower interest rates, they may charge you a one-time pre-paid interest payment calculated as a percentage of the loan. Called points", this may range from 0.25% to 2% of the loan balance, and is usually paid up front. Points are tax-deductible; consult with your tax advisor.

Appraisal Cost

Lenders hire experienced, often independent appraisers to evaluate the property’s purchase price, condition and size compared to similar recent neighborhood sales. This helps ensure the purchase price is not too high, and gives the lender more confidence in getting repaid in the event they are forced to sell the property if the borrower defaults. The appraisal costs vary depending on the property, type of appraisal, and region.

Miscellaneous Fees

Expect to see various charges incurred in the processing of your loan which might include notary, courier, and county recording fees.

Prepayment Penalties

These vary widely, so be sure you know in advance if your lender will charge a penalty if you refinance or sell, and the certain period during which the penalties apply.

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Ryan is a great realtor to work with! He is very professional yet personable. During the several months of condo searching, he listened to my preferences and gave me a good variety of options. He was also great at keeping up the communication with me. He always responded promptly to my email, texts, and phone calls. What I liked the most about him was that I could feel he was speaking and acting with my interest in mind at all times. I would highly recommend Ryan to anyone looking to purchase a property in Chicago area.

Ryan was our agent for the recent purchase of a condo in the city. We couldn’t have asked for a better realtor – for many reasons: He is very knowledgeable, he offered up good strategy and advice when needed, he was never pushy. We appreciated that we had someone with integrity on our side and felt that he truly looked out for our best interest at every step. He also went beyond the call of duty to research things for us and never let us down with things he said he’d follow up on. He is a genuinely nice person who even at the end of the process drove over an hour to our close, just to be by our side to the end.

I have worked with many realtors in my time. None can compare to the level of service we received from Ryan. He helped find the just right condo for us in the just right neighborhood (Lincoln Park). After the agreement to buy was completed there were some appraisal and mortgage issues which arose... and Ryan was right there to help resolve every obstacle. I would recommend him highly and would work with him again if the situation arose.

Ryan has been our realtor for the past 5 years and has supported us through multiple purchases, sales, and leasing opportunities. He is extremely professional, accessible, and most importantly always delivers.